Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to meter registers and, more particularly, to meter registers for remote reading that includes a multiple resonance antenna.
Description of Related Art
Presently, many locales visually read utility meters to determine utility consumption. The meters, such as water meters, include an odometer that identifies the consumption of the water consumed. The odometer is read periodically and the difference between the present and the prior reading determines the amount of utility water used. For example, if the most recent water meter reading was 2 million gallons or liters and the previous water meter reading was 1.8 million gallons or liters, then 200,000 gallons or liters of water were consumed. This procedure of individually reading water meters is time consuming, labor intensive, and expensive. In a competitive market, such an expense affects profitability to the utility provider. This is especially a problem in submetering markets where a separate entity may have to be employed to read water meters in apartment buildings and apartment building complexes.
Accordingly, systems were developed relating to remote reading systems. One such system is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,111,407 to Galpern and entitled “System for Measuring and Recording a Utility Consumption”. This particular arrangement incorporated a transponder and receiver arrangement whereby a meter reader placed a meter reading device in close proximity to a transponder for a meter reading. This arrangement reduced the time spent by the meter reader on an individual site and more accurately recorded utility consumption. However, meter reading was still a labor intensive process.
Subsequently, meter reading systems have evolved whereby they are either connected to telephone lines and/or transmitters which transmit radio waves to a central location. In many instances, this eliminates many of the problems associated with utility consumption reading. For example, Automatic Meter Reading (AMR) systems have been developed based on wireless networks. Such AMR systems typically include an end unit (EU) and a Collector Unit (CU). The EU measures the water flow and water consumption at the entrance point of houses, offices, or any civilian or industrial construction with a water connection. The EU accurately measures the water flow in a pipe and transmits the measured data to the CU using a radio frequency transmitter. Examples of such AMR systems can be found in United States Patent Application Publication No. 2012/0191380 and U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,109,131 and 6,819,292, which are hereby incorporated by reference.
There are many types of EU installations. For instance, the EU can be positioned within the basement of a house or outside of a house mounted on a pipe. In addition, in moderate climate zones, the EU is located in a subsurface ground enclosure in an area near residences or other dwellings. Such enclosures are referred to as “pits”. However, the positioning of a utility meter in such a pit causes various limitations when the utility meter is used as part of an AMR system. For instance, the radio wave signals of the antenna cannot radiate a great distance due to the properties of the pit. Further, in some instances, the pit may fill with water further hampering the transmission capability of the antenna.
Accordingly, a need exists for a meter register for remote reading that can provide a proper and consistent reading even when positioned in a pit and particularly when the pit is filled with water.